Coronavirus: London firms ask employees to work from home amid outbreak

Three firms in London have asked employees to work from home amid fears about the spread of coronavirus. According to reports, oil giant Chevron, who has its office in Canary Wharf has asked 300 staff members to work from home as a precautionary measure to tackle global coronavirus outbreak.

Another firm, Crossrail has also asked its employees to stay away for the time being as coronavirus continues to cause havoc in Europe. Media firm OMD, which is based out of London has also taken similar precautionary measures and has asked its employees to stay at home. 

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Coronavirus has spread to Europe with Italy becoming its highly affected victim. According to reports, the deadly contagious virus has claimed at least 19 lives in Italy, with most cases concentrated in the northern part of the country.

Italy has reported the most number of deaths from coronavirus outside China and that has become a major concern for other European countries, including Britain. As per reports, the number of confirmed coronavirus cases in Italy has touched 400 and in the United Kingdom, it has risen to 13.

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Coronavirus outbreak

The novel coronavirus i.e. COVID-19 has claimed more than 2,700 lives across the globe and has infected over 81,000 people since December 2019. According to reports, at least 27 people have died outside mainland China, which makes it the worst disease outbreak in the 21st century. The virus originated from a seafood market in Wuhan city, where animals were being traded illegally. Hubei province in China has been most affected by the contagious disease, which is also the epicentre of the virus. 

Coronavirus has claimed more lives than its predecessor Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS). According to reports, SARS, which broke out in China in 2002-2003 had claimed more than 774 lives, which is way below the current death toll from COVID-19. 

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Lead Image Credit: AP